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Students on the New England High School Summer Program lingered over cups of coffee before class this morning, discussing yesterday’s readings in relation to today’s, sharing stories from their river excursion, and enjoying one quiet hour before the full day ahead. 

The group walked to St. Gianna Molla Hall for the morning class, stopping to admire the beautiful mural of Raphael’s “School of Athens” as Courtney Giovinazzi, painter of the Student Center’s portrait of St. Pier Giorgio Frassati, brought it to life in the hallway. Later, benches will be placed in front of the mural, turning the College’s students into both literal and figurative students of the School of Athens as they sit at the feet of Plato and Aristotle, studying the works of these two great philosophers.

The first class of the day covered the concluding chapters of Genesis. Discussion centered largely on God’s command to Abraham that he sacrifice his son, Isaac, and on the question of whether Abraham’s obedience renders him truly blameless. Afterward, many attended Mass in honor of the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, followed by a brown scapular ceremony with by Head Chaplain Rev. Greg Markey, at which 12 students and prefects were enrolled. 

After a lunch of pineapple-topped cheeseburgers, students returned to class to discuss Søren Kierkegaard’s Fear and Trembling. The pairing of this reading with the morning’s could hardly be more fitting, as Kierkegaard returns to the biblical story of Abraham. The reading opens with four meditative retellings of the journey to Mount Moriah with Isaac, followed by a reflection on what makes Abraham’s faith so extraordinary and whether it is tempered with reason. The work culminates in a moving “Eulogy on Abraham,” celebrating the patriarch as the paragon of steadfast faith despite the mystery and great anguish of his trial. 

After class the students headed off to recreation. Check the Summer Blog tomorrow morning to read about the rest of today’s events!

More photos from the High School Summer Program

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